Mariela Aragon-Chiari is a freelance actress and acting coach for actors and non-actors. Since 1982 she has been acting and studying and participating in theatre workshops in her native country, Panama, and all around the world: ISTA in Londrina Brazil in 1994, Odin Teatret Denmark in 1997, International School of Latin American and Caribbean Theatre (EITALC) in the USA, and Colombia in 1997 and Brazil in 2001, Aprendiendo a Aprender (Learning to Learn) sponsored by the International Humanist Institute for Cooperation with Developing Countries (HIVOS) in 2003, and a Fitzmaurice five-day workshop in 2004. During these formative years she had the opportunity to work with masters such as Eugenio Barba, Roberta Carreri, Julia Varley, Santiago Garcia, Augusto Boal, Tage Larsen, Richard Armstrong, and Luis De Tavira, among others. Since becoming interested in the benefits of good breathing and alternative therapies she has also taken workshops with Gay and Kathlyn Hendricks of the Hendricks Institute (Conscious Breathing and Living: The Foundation Course, and Breathwork and Movement for Professionals), and she has completed Reiki Tummo Level 3A training. She is interested in taking the theatrical experience outside the usual boundaries and has collaborated in performances with musicians, painters, and muti-media artists. In 2004, together with another Panamanian actress, she started Proyecto La Bruja, a theatrical project for production and presentation of workshops and short plays for actors and non-actors. From 2008 to 2011 she was a member of Teatro Lagartija as actress, producer and workshops facilitator. She is co-founder of Teatro Carilimpia, present theatrical venture.
